Steering mechanism.



No. 741,395. PATENTED OCT. 13, 1903.. P. T. CABLE. STEERING MECHANISM.

APPLIOATI ON FILED NOV. 7, 1902.

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No. 741,395. PATENTE'D OUT. 13, 1903. E. T. QAELE. STEERING MECHANISM.

APPLIOATION FILED NOV. 7, 1902.

' 3 SHEETSSHEET 2.

N0 MODEL.

INVENTORZ 1):: warns PEYERS m. mom-mun. wAsNmnYOn. n. cv

PATENTED OCT. 13, 1903.

P. T. CABLE. STEERING MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 7. 1902.

a SHEETS-SHEET a.

. IN'VENTORI BY 7 ATTORNEY No. 741,395. Patented October 13, 1903.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK T. CABLE, OF NEW SUFFOLK, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO ELECTRIC BOAT COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

STEERING MECHANISM.

SI ECTFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 741,39 5, dated October 13, 1903.

Application filed November '7, 1902. Serial No. 130,369. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern: tated and that by this drum through the con- Be it known that I, FRANK T. CABLE, a citinecting tiller-ropes 7, drum 6, shaft 4, and zen of the United States, residing at New Worm-gear the rudder R will be shifted for Suffolk, in the county of Suffolk and State of steering, or if the electric motor 6 be set in Q 5 New York, have invented certain new and motion it will act through the shaft or arbor useful Improvements in Steering Mechan- 3 and the worm-gearing to actuate or shift isms, of which the following isaspecification. the rudder. lNhen operating by hand, no

This invention relates to the class of eleccurrent is used, and the armature of the motrical steering apparatus or gear for vessels, tor revolves idly; but when power is required 60 TO and has for its object a gear which may be the current is supplied to the motor by means operated by an electric motor or by hand at of a convenient switch or circuit-closer,when the will of the operator. the wheel 13 will rotate idly. The means for In the accompanying drawings, which controlling the electric motor for starting it serve to illustrate an embodiment of the inby hand and stopping it automatically will 65 I5 vention, Figure 1 is a side elevation of the now be described.

apparatus or mechanism on a relatively large Referring to the part A, through the hollow scale. Fig. 2 is a vertical mid-section of the shaft 11 extends a rotatively-mounted shaft partA of same, takenin the axis of the wind- 14, that is independent of the shaft 11. This lass-drum. Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse shaft 14 has on its outerend ahand-wheel15 7o section at m in Fig. 1. Fig. at is a plan of and at its other end a pinion 16, which gears the apparatus on a smaller scale than Figs. 1 with a spur-wheel17, loosely mounted on and to 3. Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic view showrotative about a fixed shaft 18 in the frame. ing the circuits. This wheel17 has on it an arm 19, carrying two Before proceeding with a detailed descripbrushes or bridge contacts I) and 19 On the 75 tion of the apparatus it may be well to exhollow shaft 11, carrying the drum 10, is seplain that in Fig. 1 the two major parts A cured a pinion 20, which gears with a spurand B of the apparatus are not shown in wheel 21, secured to a drum 22, rotative on their ordinary relative positions for lack of the fixed shaft 18. On the drum 22 and inroom; but the ordinary positions of these sulated from it and from each other are four 80 parts is illustrated in Fig. 4:. The part A infloating ring-like contacts I, II, III, and IV, eludes the hand-steering gear and electrical upon which bear four brushes a, a a and controlling devices, and the part B includes a respectively. These brushes are mounted the electric motor and worm-gearing at the in the frame 12 and in the operating-circuits, rudder. as will be described with reference to Fig. 5. 85 R designates the rudder, and S the stem In the diagram Fig. 5, G is the generator thereof. On the said stem is fixed a toothed and M is the motor. The floating contact I worm-wheel or segment 1, with which gears is connected, through the brush a and cona worm or screw 2, fixed on a shaft 3, which ductor c, to the positive pole of the generator forms a continuation of the arbor 4 of the ar- G. The contacts 11 and Ill are connected, 9o mature 5 of an electric motor M. On this through the respective brushes 0. and a and shaft or arbor 3 is fixed the Windlass-drum conductors c and 0 with the armature of the 6, on which are wound in opposite directions motor. The contact IV is connected, through the tiller-ropes 7. These ropes pass down the brush a and conductor 0, with one pole under guide-sheaves 8, thence to guideof the field-magnet F of the motor, and the 95 sheaves 9 at the part A, and thence up to a other pole of said magnet is'connected bye. 1 Windlass-drum 10 at that point. This drum conductor 0 with the negative pole of the 10 is fixed on a hollow shaft 11, mounted rogenerator. There is a break at 23 in the two tatively in a suitable frame 12. On the shaft floating contacts II and III, as seen in Fig. 5,

11 is fixed a steering-wheel 13. Now it will and at this point there is a cross connection 100 be obvious that by rotating the steering- 24 between the contacts 11 and III. The opwheel 13 the shaft 11 and drum 10 will be roeration is as follows: Assuming the bridgingbrushes 1) and b to be at the break 23 and the motor M inactive, in order to set the mo tor in action the hand-wheel 15 is turned. This wheel acts through the shaft 14, pinion 16, and spur-wheel 17 to shift the brushes 1) and b untilthey connect the respective floating contacts I II and III IV electrically, and thus close the current through the motor M. This causes the armature of the motor, acting through the shaft 3, worm 2, and segment 1, to shift the rudder. In rotating, however, the shaft 3 rotates the drum 6 and through the tiller-ropes 7 the drum 10 at A. This drum rotates the shaft 11 and through the pinion 20 and spur-Wheel 21 the drum 22, carrying the floating contacts. The conse quence is that this movement of the drum 22 finally brings the break 23 again under the brushes 1) and 5 thus breaking the circuit and stopping the motor. Now if the handwheel 15 be turned so as to shift the bridgingbrushes 1) and b in the opposite direction the direction of the current through the motor will be reversed by the cross connections 24 between the floating contacts II and III, and the motor will be reversed, so as to shift the rudder in the opposite direction. Obviously the extent to which the bridging-brushes b and b are primarily shifted by the hand- Wheel 15 will govern the extent to which the rudder will be shifted by the motor.

In Fig. 5, 25 designates diagrammatically the switch employed for breaking the circuit through the motor when the steering-gear is to be operated by hand through the wheel 13.

It will be noted that in the construction shown a steering gear or apparatus is provided which may be operated by hand or be operated by an electric motor under the control of the hand. The motor is arrested automatically when it shall have shifted the rudder to starboard or port to an extent governed by the hand-operated controlling devices-that is to say, the hand-operated means for setting in operation and reversing the motor, comprising the brushes and the means for moving them, is operativelyindependent mechanically of the motor and remains stationary 'while the motor is operating to shift the rudder.

Obviously the part A of the apparatus may be situated at any point, as in the pilot-house or conning-tower of the boat, and the part B be situated at another point, the connecting tiller ropes or chains being passed over guidesheaves necessary to change their direction.

Having thus described my invention, I claim-- 1. A mechanism comprising a part to be shifted, an electric motor, gearing between said part and the motor whereby the latter shifts the former, a drum 10, mechanism between said drum and gearing whereby the part maybe shifted by hand, a rotatable carrier for floating contacts, gearing coupling the drum 10 and said carrier, the floating contacts on said carrier, a generator, circuits including said generator, the motor and said floating contacts, circuit making and breaking contacts mounted to move concentrically about the said carrier, and means for manually operating the last-named contacts.

2. A steering apparatus for vessels, comprising a rudder, gearing for shifting the same, an electric motor connected with and operating said gearing, a Windlass-drum secured on the shaft driven by the armature of the motor, the Windlass-drum 10, the tillerropes connecting said windlass-dru ms whereby one drum may drive the other, a steering- Wheel for rotating the drum 10, the drum 22, gearing between said drum and the drum 10, whereby the latter drives the former, the floating contacts on said drum, a generator, circuits including said generator, said floating contacts, and the motor, circuit making and breaking brushes 6 and b bearing on the said floating contacts, and means, operated by hand, for actuating said brushes.

3. In a steering apparatus for vessels, the combination with the rudder, gearing for operating same, an electric motor which actuates said gearing, a generator for supplying said motor and circuits including said motor and generator, of means for controlling the operation of said motor, said means comprising a pinion 16, means for driving said pinion from said motor, a rotatively-mounted spur-wheel 17, driven by said pinion, a drum 22, connected to and rotating with the wheel 17, the four floating cont-acts I, II, III, IV, carried by the drum 22, the brushes a 0. a a bearing on the respective floating contacts and forming parts of the circuit, the bridging-brushes Z) and b bearing respectively on the contacts I, II, and III, IV, and means for shifting said bridging-brushes by hand, said contacts II and III having breaks at 23, and cross connections at said break, substantially as set forth.

In witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name, this 1st day of November, 1902, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

FRANK T. CABLE.

Witnesses:

HOWARD G. TUTHILL, FRANK L. BRAKE. 

